91¸£Àû

Molly Pugh-Jones

Molly is one of our in-residence Policy Fellows based in the Centre for Interdisciplinary Methodologies.

Molly is a health justice advocate with experience in global health advocacy, youth leadership and community organising.

She currently works as Advocacy Manager at STOPAIDS where she works to coordinate advocacy on human rights-based approaches to digital technologies for health. Molly is passionate about the equitable and meaningful inclusion of young people in policy and advocacy.

Molly studied a BSc in Social Anthropology and holds an MSc in Global Health. She remains engaged in academic research and has published papers on various topics including pharmaceutical regulation, mental health and HIV, and inequalities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sir Ian McCartney

Sir Ian McCartney is a former UK government minister with extensive experience in labour market, employment, and social policy. A Labour MP from 1987 to 2010, he served in a range of senior roles, including as a full Cabinet Minister, Minister of State for Trade and Pensions, and Minister for the Cabinet Office. He also served as Chairman of the Labour Party.

During his time in government, he played a central role in shaping major employment reforms, including the introduction of the National Minimum Wage and the extension of core workplace rights such as paid holidays. His work focused on improving job quality, strengthening protections for workers, and ensuring that policy translated effectively into practice.

In the Cabinet Office and No.10, he led a number of cross-government initiatives and special projects agreed with the Prime Minister, including coordinating preparations for the Manchester Commonwealth Games. He also pioneered the development of public service hubs, reflecting a wider commitment to integrated, place-based approaches to service delivery.

With a background rooted in industry and trade unionism, his career has been characterised by a strong emphasis on fairness at work, practical policy delivery, and sustained engagement with employers and workers to support inclusive labour markets.

Sanjay Kumar

Sanjay Kumar is a empirical development practitioner with over 15 years of experience in designing, implementing, and evaluating large-scale workforce development programs in India. He currently serves as State Project Manager (Pedagogy & Learning Management) with JEEViKA – Bihar Rural Livelihoods Promotion Society (BRLPS), Government of Bihar, where he leads the pedagogical and quality assurance architecture of one of India’s largest state-led skilling ecosystems.

His work focuses on bridging policy and practice by translating national skilling frameworks into scalable, outcome-oriented systems. He has led the development of competency-based curricula, institutional quality assurance mechanisms, and assessment systems aligned with national standards such as NSQF and NCVT. He has also overseen the appraisal and quality assurance of over 100 training institutions, ensuring alignment with labour market demand and employability outcomes.

Sanjay’s work reflects a strong commitment to evidence-based practice. He has collaborated with the 91¸£Àû and J-PAL South Asia on research examining the role of informed mobilization in improving training retention and employment outcomes under the DDU-GKY programme. His research and practice interests lie in skills ecosystems, migration, labour market transitions, and inclusive development, particularly for rural and marginalized youth.

He has contributed to the integration of technology in skilling through the design of digital systems for learner tracking, job matching, programme monitoring, and has facilitated industry engagement platforms to strengthen the school-to-work transition.

Sanjay holds an M.Phil. in Planning & Development from IIT Bombay and a Master’s degree in Social Work from Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai. His academic training, combined with extensive field experience, informs his interest in strengthening the interface between public systems, pedagogy, and labour market institutions.

Through this fellowship, he seeks to deepen his engagement with global research and comparative perspectives on skills, employment, and inclusive growth, while contributing practitioner insights from large-scale public systems in India

Steven Heales

Steven is Head of Business Innovation and Technology at West Midlands Combined Authority.

Steven has extensive experience at the intersection of public policy, innovation, and economic growth.

Currently Head of Business Innovation and Technology, he has led strategic programmes across combined authorities since 2021, building strong networks spanning academia, policymakers, and business leaders across the West Midlands, Greater Manchester, and the wider UK.

Steven brings international policy insight through leading innovation delegations across Europe and active participation in the Innovation Capital of Europe network.

His expertise and experience centres on productivity and devolution, and public service reform, with a strong emphasis on translating research into practical policy impact.

Jonathan Benjamin

Sgt Jonathan Benjamin has served with West Midlands Police since January 2020 and is currently the force's WMP Race Action Plan Coordinator. Jonathan has spent the majority of his service in neighbourhood policing having served as a Constable within Birmingham East prior to his move on promotion to Sergeant Solihull Town Centre, taking responsibility for local policing of the town and surround residential areas.

Having worked as the WMPRAP Coordinator for over a year, Jonathan has worked closely with the force executive lead ACC O'Hara and the four workstream leads to deliver against the force strategy. This involves strategic involvement in the review and development of force policies and procedures as well as, community engagement and internal cultural change.

Prior to policing, Jonathan was a sprinter and coach for Birchfield Harriers as well as completing a degree in Sport and Exercise. Jonathan's dissertation explored the disparity in the portrayal of Black and White athletes in mainstream media through a Critical Race Theory & semiotic lens; an early indicator of his interest in matters of social justice and race relations.